Radiation Therapy and your Dental Health
Are you being treated for cancer?
If you are taking drugs to treat cancer, or receiving chemotherapy or head and neck radiation, you may be suffering from dry mouth. There may be less saliva in your mouth due to drugs and chemotherapy, and in the case of head and neck radiation, there may be no saliva present if the salivary glands were irradiated. In addition, nausea associated with chemotherapy can result in stomach acid present in your mouth eating into your teeth and causing dental erosion.
Insufficient or no saliva increases your chances of having tooth decay and cavities, and can also result in tooth sensitivity. The loss of minerals caused by dental erosion on your teeth also weakens your teeth, further increasing your risk of tooth decay and sensitivity. It’s important to replenish the minerals in your mouth that you would otherwise get from saliva.
- Helps relieve dry mouth by restoring a “normal feeling” of saliva lubrication
- Helps strengthen teeth against tooth decay anderosion
- Helps restoreminerals (calcium and phosphate) that helpstrengthen your teeth
- Helps sootheandprevents sensitivity
- Helps buffer against acid
Saliva is your body’s natural oral defense system, delivering important minerals to your teeth to keep them strong and healthy. If you have dry mouth because of taking medications, you can suffer a mineral imbalance because of insufficient saliva. MI Paste™ / MI Paste Plus™ protects against tooth decay (dental caries) and cavities, and also relieves dry mouth sensitivity.
Call our office for more information on how to protect your teeth while undergoing radiation therapy!